10 Good tips for creating better T-shirt designs

Expert advice to get you started in T-shirt design or improve your skills.

Shirt configuration is a gigantically famous outlets for creatives. Regardless of whether you’re an artist, visual planner or typographer, putting your outlines on T-shirts can be tremendously engaging (not slightest on the grounds that you can offer your outlines on the web).

Be that as it may, the procedure can be overwhelming. Here, I’ll stroll through my best tips for outlining custom T-shirt designs and printing your own T-shirts.

(What’s more, on the off chance that you require some illustration tips, go to our How to Draw article.)

01. Source a good printer

So your design is finished and properly artworked, but your tee will only be as ever as good your printer. Try a reputable company like White Duck in the UK or Hey Monkey in the US. You could even give your local screenprinter a call. But it’s important to take time to learn about what type of tee you want to print on.

The weight, sizes, labeling options, cost and so on all affect the end product. This takes a while and will require speaking to various companies, but one thing is for certain: deal with a company that wants to treat your tee as an end retail product and will handle your work with care. Screenprinting is an art.

02. Get educated

To have a good understanding of anything, you need to study it and understand its context. Tees have come out of every subculture phenomenon that has ever existed, whether it’s music, skateboarding, street art, sport or general pop culture.

Find out about them and and have an appreciation for it all. One good book for reference is Vintage T-shirts by Lisa Kidner.

03. Consider your market

This is an important one. Are you designing for male or female; young or old? At the end of the day you’re designing a product that you want people to wear.

Like a good brand designer would do, write down the exact person you want to attract to your T-shirt design – who they are, what they like, what other brands they like and go from there.

04. Keep your humour subtle

If you’re going for a humorous T-shirt design, you don’t want it coming across as a cheap and low-cost joke shirt. Even the most successful loud and in-your-face designs have subtle humour.

I’m not a fan of 99 per cent of humorous tees, but done correctly, humour can turn heads. I’m digging Brad McGinty‘s designs at the moment because he has a good balance.

You can also use Halftones to make the most of the restricted colours you’re allowed to use.

06. Imagine the design on a T-shirt

Having worked for both print and web over the years, I know the vast difference between design on screen and a printed piece. Don’t be afraid to mock up your T-shirt design on a photo of a model. Print it out if necessary and place it on an actual tee. Make sure you see your artwork at actual size.

07. Be ahead of the gameBe inspired by what the latest trends are, but don’t copy them. Chances are by the time you’ve seen that T-shirt produced, other designers are moving onto something else behind closed doors.

08. Prepare your artwork properly

Use Pantone Colours when screen printing – your printer will love you for it. They’ll also love you if you outline text and expand any strokes you may have. There are plenty of good tutorials out there, depending on whether you’re using Illustrator or Photoshop.

9. Take time to explore your concept

Sketch your T-shirt design out, go for a walk, create a few variations, have something to eat, do a full brainstorming process. Then sleep on it. And do it all over again. If it comes to you straight away, great. But explore other creative options just in case.

10. Detail is king but keep things simple

Everyone appreciates great drawing ability and attention to detail. There’s nothing better than seeing a really well executed masterpiece on a tee, which you can study for hours.

But, equally, some of the most classic T-shirt designs are the simplest – and get the message across through their simplest form. Anywhere in the middle and you may struggle to deliver a successful design.